Arsenal host Tottenham this afternoon as the two in-form sides meet in the first north London derby of the season. The rivals both sit in the top four going into the match at the Emirates Stadium, with neither tasting defeat yet in the Premier League.
The Gunners will be desperate to extend their long unbeaten run in this fixture on home soil, with Spurs last winning at the Emirates in the League back in 2010. Mikel Arteta’s side got their Champions League campaign up and running in midweek in emphatic fashion, and will be hoping Tottenham go toe-to-toe with them in the same way PSV did. David Raya is expected to keep his place in goal, but Gabriel Martinelli will likely miss out with injury.
Spurs are full of confidence themselves after a flying start to life under Ange Postecoglou, who has lifted the mood at the club and brought a thrilling brand of football with him. It remains to be seen whether he brings Richarlison back into the side to lead the line, or sticks with Heung-min Son through the middle. Follow all the action with Standard Sport’s LIVE blog below, featuring expert analysis from Simon Collings and Dan Kilpatrick at the ground!
Live updates
Promises to be a thriller!
Levy: Spurs have Kane buy-back clause
Daniel Levy has reiterated that Tottenham would be able to re-sign Harry Kane if the England captain targeted a return to the Premier League.
The 30-year-old – also England’s record scorer – has enjoyed a blistering start to life at Bayern Munich, netting his first hat-trick yesterday to continue a superb run of goalscoring form.
But talk over a potential future return to Tottenham has already been circulating this week after chairman Levy revealed during a rare appearance at a fans’ forum on Tuesday that Spurs had inserted a buy-back clause into the deal with Bayern.
Levy was quizzed about that clause again during a subsequent interview with Bloomberg, remaining tight-lipped on the specific details of the agreement but reiterating that Tottenham would have the capacity to re-sign Kane if the player one day desired a return to N17.
“The actual precise detail of the contract with Bayern Munich should remain confidential,” Levy said. “All I would say is if that one day Harry wanted to come back to the Premier League, and he wanted to come to Tottenham, we would have the ability to purchase him.”
Arteta: Dropping Ramsdale has been tough
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta says it has been uncomfortable dropping Aaron Ramsdale, with summer signing David Raya starting the last two games and keeping cleaning sheets in both.
“Maybe I look [comfortable] but in your tummy when you have players sitting and you have to announce the line-up, it is one of the hardest things,” said Arteta.
“Players feel valued and happy when they play. And when they don’t it is very difficult. You want them to feel loved and trusted and the way to do it is to play them.
“It is hard, but with other players it is the same. Aaron is an exceptional character, he has got this charisma and this aura around him, and we all know that and I fully understand that.
“I understand that and it is very difficult with every player. And I suffer and I care about every player who is not playing but this is the competition and this is my job to make decisions in the best possible way for the team.
“He (Ramsdale) has been very supportive and really good around the place and that is what I expect from every single player as when you are on the field, there is someone else who is not. So it goes both ways. So far he has been really, really good.”
Merson unsurprisingly backing Arsenal…
Arsenal will “absolutely slaughter” Tottenham this afternoon, according to Paul Merson.
The unbeaten Gunners welcome unbeaten Spurs to the Emirates Stadium looking for a third consecutive derby win over their rivals.
But Spurs under Ange Postecoglou are a far more threatening prospect than the team coached by Antonio Conte last season, scoring more goals, attempting more shots and with a higher xG than tomorrow’s opponents.
But Merson believes Postecoglou’s “gung-ho” approach will play into Arsenal’s hands and Spurs will be “ripped to shreds”.
“I’m bullish, very bullish,” he said on Sky Sports. “I can’t see anything but an Arsenal win. I think they will absolutely slaughter them, I do. Absolutely rip them to shreds.
“ I don’t think [Spurs] will change the way they play … Man United had 14 shots against them in the first half, give Arsenal 14 shots tomorrow and we will see what happens.
“It’s end to end, it’s good football, I like the way they play, I like the manager. It’s gung-ho football. But you don’t play gung-ho football against better players than you.”
Standard Sport prediction
Until Arsenal’s win at Spurs last season, this had been a fixture dominated by the home side.
It is 13 years since Tottenham won at the Emirates Stadium in the Premier League, with the Gunners now probably the strongest they have been, particularly on home soil, throughout that period.
Postecoglou’s side are likely to try and take the game to Arsenal, who showed against PSV just how dangerous they can be when given space. The Gunners’ front-line are all in superb form and can make this another derby day to remember for the red side of north London.
Arsenal to win, 3-1.
Tottenham team news
Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou has a decision to make at centre-forward.
Heung-min Son has led the line in the last two games, scoring a hat-trick at Burnley before a more subdued display in the win over Sheffield United last weekend, but Richarlison was the game-changer from the bench against the Blades.
The Brazilian scored his first home League goal to equalise before setting up the last-gasp winner for Dejan Kulusevski. If Richarlison returns to the XI, Son could switch to the left wing, replacing Manor Solomon.
Ivan Perisic is expected to be sidelined for the rest of the season after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury in training this week, joining Giovani Lo Celso (quad), Rodrigo Bentancur (also ACL), Ryan Sessegnon (hamstring) and Bryan Gil (groin) on the sidelines.
Predicted Tottenham XI (4-2-3-1): Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Sarr, Bissouma; Son, Maddison, Kulusevski; Richarlison
Arsenal team news
Gabriel Martinelli is a doubt for Arsenal, having missed the win over PSV due to the hamstring injury he picked up at Goodison Park. Leandro Trossard is likely to keep his place on the left of the front three.
Thomas Partey remains out, with the Gunners expected to name a similar side to the one that shone in the Champions League. Kai Havertz’s place in the team could be under threat, with Fabio Vieira pushing for a start.
David Raya is expected to continue in goal, with Aaron Ramsdale seemingly very much now back-up despite Mikel Arteta’s insistence that the pair will rotate.
Predicted Arsenal XI (4-3-3): Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Rice, Havertz; Saka, Jesus, Trossard
How to watch Arsenal vs Tottenham
TV channel: In the UK, the game will be televised live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football, with coverage beginning at 1pm BST.
Live stream: Subscribers can also catch the contest live online via the Sky Go app.
Live blog: You can follow all the action right here with us, featuring expert analysis from Simon Collings and Dan Kilpatrick at the ground.
Good morning!
Hello and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of Arsenal vs Tottenham!
Huge afternoon ahead as the first north London derby of the season takes centre stage, with the two sides going into this highly-anticipated clash full of confidence.
They are both unbeaten in the Premier League so far, both playing great football… set up to be a classic.
We’ll have all the latest updates, build-up and team news ahead of kick-off, which comes at 2pm BST from the Emirates Stadium. Stay with us!
